Help AAA Give Back to Your Community

For AAA Northeast, community involvement is part of the culture. Employees are encouraged to volunteer – and do so often – supporting local charitable organizations that help important causes, such as the environment, food insecurity and local families in need.

And because we love meeting and engaging with our members, there are often projects that get members involved as well.

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Uniting AAA Employees and Members

“Our member engagement events are a great way for us to bring our involvement with nonprofit organizations in our communities together with our members who want to also give back, but just need help in finding events where they can,” said Thomas Ryan, district branch manager in Rhode Island. Ryan oversees the Branch Operations Member Engagement Committee and supervises several campaigns across the AAA Northeast territory, including the Earth-friendly ones.

“Helping and serving is a way of life here,” added Shannon Reyes, the branch manager in Warwick, R.I., who helps with events. “It is one of the things that I really love about working for AAA.”

Cleanups, Food Drives and More

Some of the most popular charitable activities in our communities occur annually, including Earth Month cleanups in April. This year, more than 100 member volunteers joined AAA employees at cleanup events throughout Northeast.

This summer’s food-gathering event, the Road to Hunger Relief, kicked off on July 5 and will feature more outreach opportunities and hands-on activities than ever before.

“Our goal this year is to establish more engagement events where we can stand shoulder to shoulder with our members in giving back to the community,” said Ryan. “Events will include working with food pantries and missions, packaging and preparing food and assisting at soup kitchens, local farms, shelters and other (organizations) that need help.”

Trunk-or-treats, another member favorite, are scheduled throughout October, and there are toy collections during the holidays.

Making a Difference

“I love to serve our community and know that my contributions are helping someone else and encourage all of us to take some time to give back,” said Tamara Thornton, a branch manager in the Smithfield, R.I., branch. “I like being able to play a role in making a difference in the community.” 

More local events dot the calendar year-round. AAA branches host blood drives, plant vegetable and flower gardens for nursing homes and other care facilities and pack meals to distribute at local food pantries. Other employee charitable efforts include joining the Southern New England Heart Walk, creating cards for Sending Smiles and sorting donations for the Dorcas International Clothing Collaborative, to name a few.

“I really enjoy the smaller settings where we get to make a bigger impact,” Reyes said. “I feel that the AAA branch teams do an amazing job of finding those opportunities and bringing as many employees and members as possible along with us to support these organizations.”

Dozens of in-house projects are always on tap at offices in the Northeast, including making blankets for veterans, sending cards to senior citizens, planting flowers at community buildings, packing diapers and helping to harvest crops for food banks.

“When we can get out and volunteer, we show those that live in the community that AAA cares,” said Reyes. “We want to make our communities a better place to live, work and enjoy.”

We’d love to see you at our next community event! Find AAA community service events in your area.

We are always looking for new local charities and organizations to support. Do you have a favorite? Please share your suggestions in the comments.

Featured image: AAA employees and members from Worcester, including Mayor Joseph Petty (center), take part in a community cleanup event.